The Truth is the Truth

 The Truth is the Truth; there is no compromise, says Benedict XVI.

The Pope made this observation in today's general audience, as he reflected on the feast of the martyrdom of St. John the Baptist, celebrated today.
John "did not keep silent about the truth, and thus he died for Christ who is the Truth. For love of the truth, he did not give in to compromises with those who were powerful, nor was he afraid to address strong words to the one who lost his way to God," he said.
Though dedicating today's audience address to this saint, Christ's cousin and precursor, the Holy Father also continued his series on prayer, as he noted that John's strength can be traced to his contact with God.
"We ask: where does this life [in John's figure] come from, this interiority, which is so strong, so principled, so consistent, which is spent so totally for God and in preparing the way for Jesus? The answer is simple: from his relationship with God, from prayer, which is the guiding thread of his entire life."
"The entire life of Jesus' precursor was nourished by his relationship with God, especially during the time he spent in the wilderness (cf. Luke 1:80); the wilderness, a place of temptation, but also a place where man feels his own poverty, for there he is deprived of all support and material security, and he comes to understand that the only secure reference point is God himself," the Pontiff reflected.
John is not only a man of prayer, but also a guide in prayer, Benedict continued. He is also, the Pope said, an example to encourage steadfastness in our own day.
"Celebrating the martyrdom of St. John the Baptist also reminds us -- Christians in our own times -- that we cannot give into compromise when it comes to our love for Christ, for his Word, for his Truth," he said. "The Truth is the Truth; there is no compromise. The Christian life requires, as it were, the 'martyrdom' of daily fidelity to the Gospel; the courage, that is, to allow Christ to increase in us and to direct our thoughts and actions.
"But this can only occur in our lives if our relationship with God is strong. Prayer is not time lost, nor does it steal space away from our activities, even those that are apostolic; it is exactly the opposite: only if we are able to have a life of faithful, constant, trusting prayer, will God himself give us the ability and strength to live in happiness and peace, to overcome difficulties and to courageously bear witness to him. May St. John the Baptist intercede for us, that we might always maintain the primacy of God in our lives."
--Pope Benedict XVI, quoted in ZENIT

For the Greater Glory of God

On this Feast of St Ignatius of Loyola, here is an excerpt from him (from Magnificat, 2010 p. 420):


(describing a time of desolation)"...Our old enemy places before us every obstacle to divert us from what has begun, attacking us very much. He acts completely counter to the first lesson, often plunging us into sadness without our knowing why we are sad. Nor can we pray with any devotion...

So here the person fighting has to identify the enemy. If it is a time of consolation, we must lower and abase ourselves, and reflect that soon the trial of temptation will come. If temptation, darkness, or sadness come, we must act against them without allowing any bitterness, and wait in patience for the Lord's consolation, which will evaporate all disturbances and shadows from outside."

Truth Stumbles in the Public Square

"Lo, the hand of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear.  Rather it is your sins that make him hide his face so that he will not hear you...

"That is why right is far from us and justice does not reach us.  We look for light, and lo, darkness; for brightness, but we walk in gloom...

"Right is repelled, justice stands far off; For truth stumbles in the public square, uprightness cannot enter."
--all from Isaiah chapter 59.

The pharisees responded to Pilate "We have no king but Caesar."  America was founded as a republic, refusing to be led by an earthly king.  More room for the King of Kings to be our ruler.  Somewhere along the line, our refrain has changed to "I have no king but myself."--a far cry from "To Jesus Christ our sovereign King!"  Yet the truth remains, He is our King.  Whether acknowledged or not, He is King.  Pray for our nation, that we return to the truth and proclaim Him King -- in the public square.

Direct Your Gaze

"Wherever we direct our mental gaze, there we may be said to stand.  That is why Elijah said:  'The Lord lives, in whose sight I stand.'  He did indeed stand before God, for his heart was intent on God. 

"That the Jews gazed at the pillar of cloud and stood at the doors of their tents in adoration, has this meaning:  when the human mind perceives these high and heavenly things -- albeit in image-- the elevation of its thought has already lifted it free from the limits of its bodily habitation; and although it is denied sight of the divine substance, it humbly adores Him whose power it can already see by spiritual illumination.   --from Liturgy of the Hours, Carmelite Proper, Office of Readings for July 20

Where is your gaze directed?  That is where you will stand.

Our Lady of Mt. Carmel

This feast, instituted in the 14th century by the Carmelite Order, commemorates the anniversary of the day in 1251 when the Blessed Mother gave the brown scapular to St. Simon Stock. "The scapular is an external sign of the filial relationship established between the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother and Queen of Mount Carmel, and the faithful who entrust themselves totally to her protection, who have recourse to her maternal intercession, who are mindful of the primacy of the spiritual life and the need for prayer" (Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy 205)

"The Blessed Virgin Mary watches unceasingly with a mother's loving care over the brethren of her Son, and lights us along our pilgrim way to the Mount of your Glory, our beacon of comfort, and the embodiment of all our hopes as members of the Church" (Preface for Our Lady of Mount Carmel). -- taken from The Magnificat, July 16, 2010 page 235

In the spirituality of the Carmelite Order, the blessed Virgin Mary shows the way to all who believe in her Son. She says to the servants at the wedding feast in Cana: "Do whatever he tells you" (John 2:5). Let us pray that we be granted the grace to fulfill her words on this feast day.

--from the website of the Saint James Vicariate for Hebrew speaking Catholics in Israel

Who will listen?

"A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house."  (Mk 6:4)

"True prophets bear the Word of God.  They and their message are frightening because they disturb our complacency and demand of us far more than we may be willing to give.  At every Mass, we hear the prophetic word.  Will we listen?  Or will we dismiss what seems too familiar to deserve our attention?"  Magnificat, July, p. 105

Interior Life

"The only thing that can save the world from complete moral collapse is a spiritual revolution.  Christianity, by its very nature, demands such a revolution.  If Christians would all live up to what they profess to believe, the revolution would happen.  The desire for unworldiness, detachment, and union with God is the most fundamental expression of this revolutionary spirit...

"The big problem that confronts Christianity is not Christ's enemies.  Persecution has never done much harm to the inner life of the Church as such.  The real religious problem exists in the souls of those of us who in their hearts believe in God, and who recognize their obligation to love Him and serve Him -- yet do not!...

"The world we live in is dry ground for the seed of God's Truth...You cannot love Him unless you know Him.  And you cannot come to know Him unless you have a little time and a little peace in which to pray and think about Him and study His truth...The truth is, we are simply not permitted to devote ourselves to God without at the same time leading an interior life."
  --Thomas Merton, in Ascent to Truth (1951)